Twilight of the gods
by Blueshade Seraphim
Summary: On that day, when the sky fell away, our world came to an end. But... how did that day come to pass? What lead Dharkon and Galeem to such a final course of action? Unravel a story of order and chaos turning on one another.
1. The light

Since the dawn of time, everything in this vast multiverse had been commanded by two deities. Siblings, in fact. They were opposites, but equal in power and importance. Galeem, the goddess of light and order. She was beauty. She was peace. The imaginative and expansive mind that forged the world as it is. Dharkon, the god of darkness and chaos. He was adrenaline. He was ambition. The defiant and disruptive soul that willed all conflict into being. Like many mortal siblings, they often quarreled. Barely tolerating the other's presence when together. But a grand spectacle brought to life by their hands had managed to quell the tension. The hands were created as servants of their respective deity. Master hand's calm and collected gestures reflected his master's own mindset, whereas Crazy hand's constant twitches and mad cackle were a fitting portrayal of Dharkon's constant desire for entertainment.

While they were for the most part an extension of their creators, they are capable of acting on their own under rare circumstances. The smash brothers tournament was born from one of these moments of independence. Master and Crazy came together to pull fighters from across the worlds to see who would reign supreme. Master decided the rules, while Crazy chose the fighters, and filled the arena with weapons and items. Upon discovery of what their servants had made, Dharkon and Galeem were intrigued. A fun little fighting tournament that appealed to the both of them? It was certainly a welcome change. So with the approval of their superiors, this small operation became a very successful business that only grew bigger and better by the day.

And yet... could it be that this was only delaying the inevitable? Both sides always had their favorites. Someone to root for, someone to root against. In every fight, there is two sides. The 'good' outcome can only be reached when your side wins. It was but a simple, innocent fighting tournament. _Was. _But fear slowly rose that it was testing the gods patience with one another. Even without saying any words after a result, there was an unspoken air of superiority radiating from the winning faction. Brother and sister, they are two halves of the same whole. The world can only continue with the both of them, or without. But this was a truth they would soon forget. Like the calm before the storm, the conversation with their respective champions would foreshadow the events to come...

Galeem visited her treasured subjects one day. It was not often she felt doubt, and it was a fear inducing feeling; to be a goddess who does not know the answer to a dilemma. But if anyone could help to illuminate the unknown, it was her proudest warriors. She summoned her fighters, at the cliffside by the ocean. It was the meeting place for the divine. Possessing a grand open view of the heavens above, as well as the dark contrast of the sea. Galeem assumes her human form for this conference, as it was a tad more approachable than her normal appearance. In fact, her true form was impossible for the mortal eye to process, so it appeared to them as an orb of light with wings. Her human form's skin was as white as the cloth that dawns it. Her attire that of a heavenly uniform: not excessive in any way, but having the elegance befitting her station. Her wavy, but contained hair glowing with the glow of the sun.

"Sweet children..." she greeted, floating over the water in the warm rays of the morning sun. Her voice had an echo. It was gentle. Soft. Benevolent. Among the many who had come to hear her plea, was her most beloved of heroes: Simon Belmont, Rosalina, Lucina, Pit, and of course, Mario. Many had found it odd Palutena didn't make it into this inner circle within her ranks, but quickly remembered the various times her strength of character wasn't the shining example necessary to make the cut. "I come to you in need of wisdom. The answer to a conundrum I grant my attention still remains cloaked in the shadows. It is my responsibility to know all, for the benefit of all life, but alas, I cannot determine the solution. Can I ask of you to give me aid in this endeavor?"

All of them knelt before her. Lucina being the first to vocally respond. "What is it that could be troubling you, milady?" The near-omnipotent maiden floated closer to her loyal knights. "Unfortunately, it is nothing pleasant. As is known, the task I am granted as the goddess of light is to build. Expand. Maintain. To sculpt a work of art out of everything I weave into existence. But of course, I find myself restrained in this mystical purpose by my brother. I recieve no reassurance to watch him destroy, corrupt, and devalue all that I hold dear. He possesses great power like myself, but wastes it all upon his own shortsighted quest for thrill. His utopia is anarchy, and his respect for all beneath him is nonexistent. Would it not be more merciful to spare the residents of this realm prolonged suffering of his design?"

Rosalina stepped forward. "As a caretaker myself, I have to emphasize if you took that course of action, it could cause even greater destruction. The world could very easily be obliterated in that kind of fight." Galeem placed a hand on her chin as she looked out into the vast sky behind her. "Correct... That is one of my greatest concerns. I do not enjoy violence, and yet strangely through your fights I have gotten to know you all. Drawn closer to you all. The bravery and heroism in your hearts. The unyielding desire to do right over wrong and improve. This and more is why I could not forgive myself if such a conflict consumed you." She paused. Deep in thought. "Lady Galeem?" Pit inquired, with worry. The goddess ignored her angel's question, beginning to think aloud. "If only there was some means of preservation... of protecting all I hold dear in the face of such carnage... And yet, the hands won't be enough. I need an army. Strength that Dharkon could not stand up to..."

She turned back around to face her assembled crowd. "Forgive my weakness... it is not right to involve you in the affairs of us gods. If we do not tread this matter with the utmost care, the entire multiverse will be consumed in a state of M.A.D." **(Mutually Assured Destruction). **Lucina grasped her sword. "Yes. I share your worry. I've already seen what a future in ruin looks like. Please, if there's anything that we can do to help, don't feel guilty for asking." Galeem first looked surprised, but then smiled. "The purity in your heart is admirable, daughter of Ylisse. I am in your debt. I encourage all of you to forget this conversation ever occurred for the time being. I have much to consider." She started to glow brighter. "May the light caress you..." and like that, she was gone.

Her fighters honored her wishes and kept this talk in secret. If they, or Galeem herself could foresee what would come of this, either would do everything to prevent it. But when the light places razing the darkness over protecting the life it had created, there is simply no other alternative...

**(Stay tunes for chapter 2. And tell me, which side would you root for, given the choice? Light or dark? Order or chaos? Next chapter, I'll be showcasing the monarch of madness himself.)**


	2. The dark

This rising tension was not limited to Galeem and her warriors of light, however. Also in secret mere weeks apart from her meeting, Dharkon summoned his own faction. Not being one for tradition, or any of that "being proper" stuff his sister nagged him about all the time, he chose not to hold it at the cliffside. But instead, inside a little confidential project of his: Subspace. A work of infinite blackness. Where the laws of reality didn't necessarily apply. There was plenty he kept in the shadows from anyone else. And this was one of them, for the time being. He also took his human form for this little get-together. His skin and outfit were jet black, spitting in the face of Galeem's grandiose wardrobe. His hair was spiky, poorly trimmed, and messy. His eyes were snake-like, and had the distinct essence of insanity within. A trademark he carried over from his true form. He had sharp jagged teeth, and a tongue that he often decided to leave hanging out, as speaking did not require him to move his mouth. His wings were demonic, and menacing. And he clearly never cared as much for a pedicure as his sister, as his claws were about as long and sharp as you'd imagine.

**(The music "Aether Paradise Labs" from Pokemon Sun/Moon plays) **One by one, his attendees flunked in. Among them were his agents of chaos: Ridley, Wario, Wolf, Bayonetta, and the big guy himself: Bowser. Dharkon floated in the void, crossing his arms impatiently. He was bored out of his mind. If he was any good at making stuff like Galeem, he could actually put something in this place other than a whole lotta nothing. "Uggghhh! Why is everyone taking so long!? Bowow, go and track them down for me." Bowser just paused, standing on the floating hunk of rock that made up the only floor in this nowhereville. "Uhm... How exactly do I get out to find them?" Dharkon then nonchalantly broke off the koopa king's horns and attached them to his nose, to make him look like he had a mustache. "Nevermind. I'll make my own fun." Bowser chose not to say anything, out of fear of angering his superior. He'll probably need a lot of glue later.

"So then... since the others aren't coming any time soon, let's get this fortress whirling: everybody here knows about dear ol' sis, right? Of course you do. Prim and proper, pretty and polite. Everyone just _looooves_ her. I bet she's so elegant that she has tea parties with swans on a rainbow. The chick gets so butthurt when I just try to live my life. Seriously, if I had to watch one more match of no items, Fox only, Final Destination, I think I am going to scream! I can just hear her voice in my head now:" he then did a dumb blonde sort of voice. _"'Oh, Dharkon. Must you eat so noisily?' 'Ohhhh~ Dharkon. Why can't you close the front door behind you?' _Look, snowflake: if you have OCD, that's fine. But could you like, not be so triggered by every little thing I do? See you in court, Joe Lieberman." He then remembered he still had company, and had gone off on a tangent.

"Anyboodabody, it would be pretty sweet not to have her nag me. If she didn't have all these stupid rules, maybe people would actually learn to have fun for once. Problem is, my hand army aren't really gonna get too far on their own. I need something with lasers, and explosions! Something that'll really put a dent in her porcelain hide! And while Wario, being voted as 10 feet tall by MatPat is a great asset, I don't think he's gonna last against Galeem, when things get out of... _HAND." _He then summoned one of his Crazy Hands over Wario's head, forming it into a fist and appearing ready to slam it down on him. "AND HERE COMES A GIANT FIST!" He shouted, as the hand stopped mere inches from his head, causing the fat treasure hunter to faint.

Wolf approached. "What would you like us to do, then?" Ridley sharpened his claws with his teeth. "If you want to destroy a powerful foe, you must be swift, and devastating. You must do something they cannot hope to prepare for." Dharkon grew a twisted smile. "Eeheehee! Ohoho, yesss! That sounds like a delicious idea. I'm so glad I thought of it." Ridley didn't dare correct him. Dharkon's body trembled with excitement. "Muahahaha! Oh, this is gonna be fun! You are all excused. Tell our buddies who couldn't make it that they're nominated to test the might of our new...'drak ungs'." He stated, looking to the left. Getting a chuckle out of the fact they wouldn't know what drak ungs are, unless they rearranged the letters... A few weeks after that conversation, Dharkon had created Tabuu from the leftover light energy from Galeem when she made this world. Tabuu was a sort of parody of his sister in his eyes. And after supplying his creation with an army in the form of the creatures he created in the darkness of subspace, and some deadly new weapons like the subspace bomb, he set Tabuu loose on the world. Even having his pet hijack one of Galeem's pwecious Master Hands to further insult her.

Tabuu was, of course, defeated in the end. And Galeem used her powers to destroy subspace. But after that stunt, she knew without a trace of doubt who was responsible for all the madness Tabuu had wrought upon the fighters, and the multiverse. Ever since that day, Dharkon and Galeem never attended a game of smash at the same time. They couldn't even be in the same room without having to belt out insults at the other. The cracks in their relationship threatened to shatter the fragile balance of this world. The embers of distrust were fanned into a flame that was only going to grow more ferocious if this kept going as it was. The fighters from both factions tried to guide the pair back to a less vengeful state, but even the small victories along the way only prolonged what was to come.

When the darkness fails to see the value in the aspects of life it cannot bestow, like stability and tranquility, all that remains is chaos. Chaos that rages on, with no end in sight.

**Bonus Scene: Dharkon's Dolls:**

Dharkon plays with a homemade doll of Galeem. _"I'm a nag! Let's do the nag dance! You nag it to the left! You nag it to the right! I nag my brother all day and night!"_

Then he changes it to a Zero Suit Samus doll. "Feels like I'm wearing nothing at all. Nothing at all. Nothing at all."

Aaand then one of Female Robin. "It's time to tip the scales!" He then summons a weight scale and tilts it slightly for a few seconds.


	3. The war

"-intolerable, ungrateful, _spoiled amalgamation of stupidity!" _The two gods were in one of their arguments again. "Maybe if you actually let me make something of my own, I wouldn't have to meddle with your delicate little world." It was not often that Galeem lost her temper, but her patience was at an end. "Do you ever wonder why that is? The last time I even considered trusting you with managing a world was with Earthbound. And it only took you a day to turn Giygas into a deformed monstrosity, Porky into a complete psycho, and _oh yeah, _completely destroyed everything with the masked man! I was never able to fix that tragedy. There was nothing left to fix!" Dharkon rolled his eyes. "Oh, puh-lease. It's not like you've never made your worlds worse. The Aurum was one of _your _creations." You could practically see the smoke rising from their ears. "They were made to force the gods of that world to put aside their petty differences for the good of their universe. If you hadn't screwed everything up with the Chaos Kin, Hades would have been defeated much quicker. Do you have ANY comprehension of how long it took to get the timeline back on the correct path!?"

Dharkon's anger started to peak through now as well. "It's amazing you take for granted how you're worshipped and adored by millions on a daily basis. And what do I get? Nothing! You treat me like a toddler, and most mortals fear me instead of revere me." Galeem gritted her teeth. "Your public image is the result of your irresponsible actions! All you ever do is ruin things! You created Giga Bowser in that one smash tournament just to see _'spice things up'! _Ugh... Who's the greater fool? You, or me for listening to you? Get out of my sight this instant." As one last act of spite, Dharkon summoned his Galeem doll and strangled it right in front of her. "Well, it's clear you'll never give me any sort of respect. I'm outta here! Have fun without me. Or don't. I don't care." And so he stormed off. Galeem scoffed. "Heh. What do you know of respect, you disgusting creature? You'll receive only what you give. Such is only fair." She then stormed off too.

Now things were really getting out of hand. Communication between both sides were heavily monitored, and anyone who was neutral were viewed as untrustworthy. The smash bros tournaments started to reflect this growing resentment. It was no longer just a fun game to see who was the strongest. Now it was a tug of war to see who was 'better' than the other. And while things were still kept fair, the fighters caught in this small scale Cold War became increasingly reluctant to show up for the fight that day. This wasn't about bringing everyone together through competition anymore. This was about who was right, and who was wrong. It was a feedback loop of anger rising for both deities involved, despite the desperate pleas of their subordinates to re-evaluate this whole thing and put this behind them. The straw that broke the camel's back came in the form of Master Core. A monster born from the destructive thoughts these two had for each other. Every bad memory they had of their sibling came flooding back en masse, in the form of a horrifying shapeshifting beast. From that incident, something finally snapped. All hope for appeasement were just as dead as Master Core's physical body itself. War was on the horizon.

Galeem has summoned all her fighters to the cliffside one last time. Radiating a field of light that prevented Dharkon, or any of his forces from listening in on their conversation. The light Galeem's body radiated was almost blinding. Symbolic of her growing blindness within. Her voice was invaded by a somber tone. What she was about to say was going to be... hard. Her warriors still came, but now there resided a backdrop of invisible tension that drove them to be very careful about how they would respond to her. "My children... Beloved offspring of the light... Our journey to this point has been one plagued with cruelty and heartache." The fighters missed their old mistress. In her words, they could just _feel _she was still in there somewhere. But unable to conquer this growing corruption. "But I'm afraid we stand at the cusp of our most demanding trial yet. Tabuu. A pale imitation of the light with a heart blacker than the depths of subspace itself. If we do not act, my brother will continue to destroy all that we hold dear without hesitation. Creatures like Tabuu, who have no right to exist at all, will only continue to arise if Dharkon's wicked heart continues to beat."

Galeem paused, expecting some sort of encouragement from her followers, but all she got was a deafening silence. "...And so I'm afraid we have no alternative: he must be destroyed. I will do everything in my power to see to it he never harms another creature of any variety ever again. I was hoping I could dedicate more time to perfecting my means of protecting you all, but if I do not act soon, he _will _capitalize on it. I have dreaded losing a single one of you. Even those accursed traitors who reside in his filthy ranks. Through thick and thin, you were always there to help me catch my breath from my duties of watching over all that is. And so I have managed to find a way to protect you all while I focus my attention on our enemy. Now then... you recall those filthy shadow bugs Tabuu had encorporated into his forces, yes?" They all nodded. "Unforgivable as they are, they had given me a grand idea: What if I could have you all in trophy form, and I manufactured an army in your image? Copies that are of no consequence should they be deafeated? I must confess, I was very proud to have managed such a perfect answer to all my woes."

Pit then spoke up. "But... what will happen if we defeat Dharkon?" His fellow fighters then covered his mouth to prevent him from saying anything he may regret. Galeem closed her eyes. "I imagine I shall purge the world of any trace of his influence. I cannot allow others to fall down the same path as him. The cosmos shall be reborn into a prosperous land, forever capturing the joy of this fresh start. A world of light. Though I try not to mix business with pleasure, being free of his maladaptive meddling is a feeling that I hope with all my being to know one day. But back to the topic at hand: since these clone fighters are based around something Dharkon had willed into being, it would only be natural he'd know some manner of weakness he could use to his advantage. But I _will not _give him that opening..." She then assumed a fairly common stance for her: a T pose, with her head tilted back slightly.

"And so, to see that vision realized I'm left with no choice but to take extreme measures. Every being in this world contains a spirit. The very essence of their being. For my army of clones, I plan to use these spirits not only to grant my soldiers a a number of perks, but it will also ensure I don't need to dedicate nearly as much time and effort managing their behavior." Everyone gasped, knowing full well what that meant. Seeing their train of thought, Galeem addressed the issue. "Yes... this does mean that I will have to harvest them from my own creations. Leaving them without a body of their own. But the more I ponder over it, the more I come to see this is just the way things are meant to happen. A great number of them have been tainted by the darkness in one way, or another. Such lingering shadows could jeopardize the wonderous paradise I seek to create. Unlike the villains of the worlds like Ganondorf, and Bowser, their existence isn't crucial for the well-being of the histories of the lands they originate. So it is no great loss."

Lucina swallowed hard, and then held her sword tightly. She thought the world of Galeem, but this... "Milady... This isn't right. Aunt Lissa, Cynthia, Yarne, Severa... actually, I could really give or take Severa, but all of those people! You're just gonna... wipe them out!?" Galeem sighed heavily, looking at them with pleading eyes. "My children... Please don't make this any more of a task than it already is..." Pit decided to add in. "What about Magnus? What about the centurions? They're just gonna be poofed away, just like that? I've seen this before with Viridi, more destruction won't solve anything!" At that moment, Viridi telepathically rebuttled. "Hey! Leave me out of this." Rosalina cuddled her luma, as it whimpered. "Lady Galeem. There must be another way. There has to be." Galeem lowered closer to them. "If there was, I would take it. Evil must be destroyed, no matter the price. I shall gift to you 5 days."

Simon narrowed his eyes. "5 days? For what!?" Galeem stretched out her wings. "To think this over. One day for each year that you've all brought me such happiness. Regardless of your comfort with my decision, it is final. You can choose to accept the light, or to hide in the shadows. But my rays shall reach every inch of this planet, and beyond. When your time has expired, I shall return to this sacred place and use my singularity attack to set my plan into motion. It drains me quite thoroughly, which is why I shall not be using it twice. I cannot allow myself to perish, lest the world be left to Dharkon's deviations. I will try to keep you safe as best I can, but if you choose to endanger our glorious future, I will not have much hesitation to purge that darkness within you." The sky then turned pure white, and everyone shielded their eyes from the intense light. "The choice... is yours." When the light faded, Galeem was gone. Everyone fearfully discussed among themselves. Unsure of what to do.

**Meanwhile, in the newly created Dark World...**

"I'm not stupid. Ever since Tabuu, I knew it would come to this. I could tell when she started ignoring me that she was done being the goddess equivalent of Alola's Lillie. And if little miss '_raise your pinky when drinking' _is gonna try and take me down, I think I'll just have to introduce her divine posterior to a homerun bat!... and just as a side note, I really don't see how one finger being up really makes such a huge difference. Sorry Patrick, but I'm not that concerned about being fancy." Bowser and the others just stood there, in awe at their surroundings. "Oh, I guess I should explain this. I made this place out of a bunch of bits and pieces from all the worlds. I was gonna call it 'Subspace 2.0', but it turns out I missed my chance to copyright that name. And since the Zelda universe already has a dark world, I've decided to call it, and buckle your pants for this one: The Dark Realm! Originality for the win!"

Everyone paused. Ridley was the first to break the silence. "Riiight... So what exactly do you have in mind for the coming war?" Dharkon smirked. "Oh, that's easy. Galeem always has a bad habit of overthinking things. So you know what I'm gonna do? I'm just gonna chill here, and wait for her to grow tired of looking for me. Then I'll probably bump her off in her sleep or something." This was exactly the kind of response that would warrant a record scratching sound effect. Bowser's eyebrow twitched. "What!? You mean you're just gonna sit here and do nothing!?" Dharkon chuckled. "Pfft. Course not, what kind of god of chaos and darkness would I be then? From time to time I'll probably ring her doorbell and run away, maybe steal her newspaper. Oh! And I could probably turn their thermostat on by _juuust _a few degrees to make it really uncomfortable to sleep at night." A cricket could be heard in the background.

"...You do remember she doesn't even have a house... right?" Wolf asked awkwardly. Dharkon clapped his hands together. "Astute observation, Nick Furry. I'm gonna level with ya: she doesn't know this place exists, so chances are she's gonna exhaust herself searching for me. And when she gets weak enough, I come in and take her out. Done! Blamo! GG! Besides, she's most likely gonna try and erase me with her singularity attack if I don't play it smart anyway, and that thing hurts more than Sonic's live action design hurts my eyes. And SEGA's reputation shrunk three sizes that day. So yeah. You guys go out there and get completely bodied by my lovely sister, and we should be gold."

Wario's jaw dropped. "Waaa!? You're not gonna protect us!?" Dharkon shrugged, his smile widening. "It's just more fun that way, don't you think? Besides, I think your digestive tract alone might upset the structural integrity of my world here sooo yeah. Check yourself before you wreck yourself, and if you survive your initial encounter, I'll see you guys soon. Have fun. " And so he snapped his fingers, and kicked them out of the dark realm. He then stretched. "Alright, Blueshade. I'm done with my take. Give me my paycheck, and some solitaire, I'm gonna be here a while." That day was the day that the war of the gods was cemented into history. Galeem launches her attack on the world just as promised, and Kirby was the only one who made it out of that first fight. And the rest... is history.

**Bonus scene: Dharkon's arrival:**

The cutscene where Dharkon shows up plays. All his Crazy Hands reaching out as Galeem manages to escape. The hole to the dark realm growing. **"Whooooo took my 8 of cluuubs?"**


End file.
